Stable costs stimulate high egg production in Brazil

Egg production in 2018 is expected to grow between 5 percent and 6 percent compared to last year, according to the Brazilian Association of Animal protein (ABPA), which takes into account the expected upturn and maintaining production costs.
If the entity's forecast is confirmed, production this year is expected to reach 42.2 billion units in Brazil.
For the Vice President and Director of the ABPA, Ricardo Santin, the price of corn – one of the main inputs of poultry farming – should remain at levels close to the current, which favors increased production. According to him, in 2017 the value got at the R $27 the bag of 60 pounds and, this year, the cost must be close to the R $30 to serve.
"The price has been very positive in the past year, with the abundant supply of corn and soybean meal. The expectation is that in 2018 the scenario for the share price stays that way. "
According to data from the Center for advanced studies in applied economics (Cepea), the Esalq/USP, in Paraná, for example, the producers spent last year 25.9% less with this input in about 2016.
The Executive Director of the State Association of poultry farming (Asgav), José Eduardo Santos says that the trend for the sector's growth, but with caution. "We are in a time of alert. Factors such as economic and political instability could lead to a redefinition of plans, but the production must grow. "
In favour of the sector, he said, are the improvements in the conditions of production, based on changes in the law. Until 27 November, producers of eggs fell on Establishment Inspection Related mode (ER) and could sell eggs all over the country. With the publication of the new regulation of Industrial and Sanitary Inspection of Animal products (Riispoa), this mode is now extinct, and the registered producers in this category had to choose to migrate to the State or municipal inspection or adhere to the system of Federal Inspection (SIF).
"We are in a phase of greater industrialization of eggs and, at the same time, the farms are investing more in modernization and adoption of quality processes because of changes in legislation."
Santin points out that this kind of change is positive, since the segment also suffered concussions after operation image weak flesh, to be within the same production and inspection system. "Still, the market for the product was very positive," says.
The favorable scenario follows 1 2017 of resumption for the sector. In the period, the brazilian production of eggs grew 1.8 percent to 39.9 billion units. Turnover reached R $11.08 billion.
As the leader, over the past year there has been a balance of supply and demand, which caused the prices to the producer kept in positive levels – between R $75 and R $80 the box with 360 eggs. As the Cepea, in most squares surveyed, prices were above registered in 2016.
In the evaluation of carotenoids Manager of DSM in Latin America, José Francisco Miranda, in the pós-quaresma period 2017 – in which the consumption normally drops back-was marked by the firmer demand for protein than usual.
The per capita consumption over the past year was 192 units in the Country, according to the ABPA. "The intention in Brazil is to increase the consumption per person to 260 eggs in 2020 with increased production and stimulating consumption. Often the producer hold your activity not to cheapen the price, "says Miranda.
In Rio Grande do Sul, RS, Egg design that guides producers to qualify the production and promotes the consumption by the population, already managed to expand to 227 eggs per person annual consumption in the region.
Export
If 2017 on the domestic market was a positive year, exports of eggs were not so favourable. Shipments ended the period with 5800 tons, retracting 44% compared to 2016. In revenue, the retreat must reach 42.5%, to $ $8.1 million. "It is a fact that shipments declined, but we also need to consider that the base is very low; exports fell from 0.6% to 0.3% production, just the positive fact that the internal consumption qualified ", justified Santin. For 2018, the ABPA expect South Africa's market-opening will help to expand shipments, but the entity has not yet projected volumes.
Currently, the main destinations of the Brazilian product are the United Arab Emirates, Japan, Uruguay and Saudi Arabia. Of these, only Uruguay has expanded the purchases, 2% in the past year. In the period from January to November 2017, the United Arab Emirates have reduced acquisitions at 54% in comparison with the same range of the previous year.
The sector still faces the challenge of meeting the demand for a more sustainable production. According to Miranda, 90% of the chickens that lay eggs (layers) are kept in cages in Brazil, 8% in shed and only 2% are created in "free grazing" – or free range.
This pressure began to gain more power over a year ago and many fast food chains started to position on the topic. "In these networks, the egg is not the main product, so protein producers manage to reorganize to meet within the requirements without the need to change the whole system of production", says the Executive. "The use of the cage is not necessarily bad. The negative image of this system comes from the fact that there are producers who do not comply with the rules for the use of cages, "he argues.
He points out that the change of the production system in itself does not guarantee the most suitable animal creation.